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HAVERFORD, Pa. - Sophomore Bella Burda (Pleasant Valley, N.Y.) was the overall runner-up and Villanova placed four runners among the top 10 finishers in a strong team effort at the Main Line Invitational on Friday evening. A contingent of seven runners from the Wildcats competed in the team's first meet of the season, while the full Villanova lineup is expected to debut next month.

Burda covered the three-mile Alumni Course at Haverford College in 16:46.9 and sophomore Kaley Ciluffo (LeClaire, Iowa) came in fifth in 17:01.9 in her first race wearing a Wildcats shirt. The second-year runner is a transfer from Clemson who has a chance to make an immediate impact for the team.

Junior Katie Fisher (Uxbridge, Ont.), sophomore Sammy Bockoven (Hudson, Ohio) and junior Nicole Armstrong (Sydenham, Ont.) all placed in the top 11 of the field of 41 runners. Fisher came in seventh with at time of 17:14.0 and was followed by Bockoven in 10th (17:30.6) and Armstrong in 11th (17:31.4). Also in action for Villanova were juniors Rebecca Del Rossi (Canton, N.Y.) and Alexandra Russo (Bellport, N.Y.), who placed 20th (18:00.4) and 26th (18:15.7), respectively.

The five scoring runners for the Wildcats tallied 35 points in the team standings. Penn scored 22 points and La Salle 77 points among the Division I teams at the meet. Several local Division II and III schools also competed in the race.

Villanova will return to action at the Paul Short Run on October 1.

TEAM SCORES

Penn                   1st of 3        22Villanova              2nd             35La Salle               3rd             77

COMPLETE VILLANOVA RESULTS

Bella Burda            2nd of 41       16:46.9Kaley Ciluffo          5th             17:01.9Katie Fisher           7th             17:14.0Sammy Bockoven         10th            17:30.6Nicole Armstrong       11th            17:31.4Rebecca Del Rossi      20th            18:00.4Alexandra Russo        26th            18:15.7